False Accusation Complaint | Securing Non-Prosecution for a Client Accused of False Accusation

The client said it was impossible to accept being placed at risk of punishment after receiving a complaint for false accusation, even though the client had been the victim of rape.

The client also said the client was suffering from severe depression and requested help in concluding the case as soon as possible.

Where false accusation is recognized, under Article 156 of the Criminal Act it is punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years or a fine of up to 15 million won.

However, under Article 157 of the Criminal Act, a person who has committed false accusation may have the sentence mitigated or remitted if the person confesses or surrenders before the trial or disciplinary disposition of the falsely accused case becomes final.

The specialized attorney argued that, after the client had decided to break up with the complainant, the client went to the complainant’s home to retrieve belongings left there.

The client rang the doorbell of the complainant’s home and asked for the belongings to be returned, but the complainant said there was something to discuss and tried to pull the client into the home by the hand.

The client refused, but the complainant kept pulling the client by the hand and pushed the client’s back, causing the client to enter the complainant’s home.

To prove this, the specialized attorney submitted CCTV material capturing the scene in which the complainant pulled the client by the hand at the time of the incident.

The specialized attorney explained that the client went into the complainant’s home and asked where the client’s belongings were, but the complainant claimed that the client had pushed her onto the bed.

The client refused, asking what she was doing, but the complainant, saying that they had already had sexual relations and asking why the client was being shy, restrained the client’s body and committed rape.

The client wanted to flee from the complainant’s home right away, but out of fear that the complainant might assault the client, the client asked the complainant to buy some feminine hygiene products.

Afterward, as soon as the complainant went to the convenience store, the client rushed out of the complainant’s home and escaped by way of the stairs.

To prove this, the specialized attorney submitted as evidence CCTV footage showing the complainant stepping out of the home at the time of the incident and the client rushing out a few minutes later.

In addition, the attorney argued that the client had been receiving psychiatric treatment for several years due to the harm suffered from the rape, and submitted the psychiatric medical records as evidence.

The specialist attorney strongly argued that the client was not guilty of false accusation.

Under Supreme Court Decision 2018Do2614, rendered on July 11, 2019, the mere fact that a non-prosecution disposition or an acquittal was issued with respect to a reported allegation of having suffered harm such as sexual assault must not be used as an affirmative basis for finding false accusation, nor may the reported content be concluded to be false on that ground alone.

Moreover, in a specific case, the explanation regarding the fact of having suffered harm such as sexual assault and the circumstances leading to the report must not be readily rejected by applying a standard of what a genuine victim would surely have done, without sufficiently considering the special circumstances faced by the person claiming to be a victim.

The client filed a criminal complaint against the complainant for rape because the complainant had sexual intercourse against the client's will.

In particular, the investigative authority, after investigating both the client and the complainant, determined that rape was established and even indicted the complainant.

The specialist attorney emphasized this point to underscore that the client had not falsely accused the complainant.

The specialist attorney argued that the client likewise was not guilty of the 🔗crime of perjury.

The complainant claimed that the client had falsely testified that the complainant forcibly dragged the client into the complainant's home. However, the client had no intention whatsoever of entering the complainant's home, yet entered it under the complainant's coercion.

The specialist attorney emphasized that, since the CCTV footage also shows a scene in which the complainant grabs the client's arm and pushes the client's back to make the client enter the home, it cannot be found that the client testified while aware that the testimony was false.